Phrase guide

rags to riches

noun · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

noun

Meaning 1

From poverty to exceptional wealth.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: attributive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: riches to rags

History

Etymology

By surface analysis, a change from wearing ragged clothing (due to being impoverished) to obtaining a lot of money.

Across languages

Translations

17 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: مِنَ الْفَقْرِ إِلَى الثَّرَاءِ (mina l-faqri ʔilā ṯ-ṯarāʔi) — from poverty to exceptional wealth
  • Arabic: مِنَ الْفَقْرِ الْمُطْلَقِ إِلَى غِنَى الْفَاحِشِ (mina l-faqri l-muṭlaqi ʔilā ḡinā l-fāḥiši) — from poverty to exceptional wealth
  • Arabic: مِنَ الْعُسْرِ إِلَى الْيُسْرِ (mina l-ʕusri ʔilā l-yusri) — from poverty to exceptional wealth
  • Chinese Mandarin: 麻雀變鳳凰 /麻雀变凤凰 (máquè biàn fènghuáng) — from poverty to exceptional wealth
  • Finnish: tuhkimotarina — from poverty to exceptional wealth
  • Finnish: ryysyistä rikkauksiin — from poverty to exceptional wealth
  • French: de la misère à la richesse — from poverty to exceptional wealth
  • Galician: da pobreza á riqueza — from poverty to exceptional wealth
  • German: vom Tellerwäscher zum Millionär — from poverty to exceptional wealth
  • Hungarian: koldusból királyfi — from poverty to exceptional wealth
  • Italian: dalle stalle alle stelle — from poverty to exceptional wealth
  • Latin: per aspera ad astra — from poverty to exceptional wealth
  • Macedonian: од нула до кула (od nula do kula) — from poverty to exceptional wealth
  • Polish: od zera do milionera — from poverty to exceptional wealth
  • Portuguese: da miséria a riqueza — from poverty to exceptional wealth
  • Portuguese: renascido das cinzas — from poverty to exceptional wealth
  • Swedish: från koja till slott — from poverty to exceptional wealth